ERIC Number: ED586585
Record Type: Non-Journal
Publication Date: 2018
Pages: 406
Abstractor: As Provided
ISBN: 978-0-4380-3023-7
ISSN: EISSN-
EISSN: N/A
Available Date: N/A
Students' Spiritual Integration into Bible Colleges: A Grounded Theory Study
Blount, Brett Alan
ProQuest LLC, Ed.D. Dissertation, Liberty University
The purpose of this grounded theory study was to explain how undergraduate students integrate spiritually into Bible colleges in the Midwestern and Southeastern United States and discern the role spiritual integration plays in persistence. Spiritual integration of Bible college undergraduate students occurs when they perceive that their spirituality, whether possessed by them upon their enrollment and/or formed during their attendance, has aligned with the spiritual environment of their college and therefore have accepted their place in that environment. A total of 35 participants, 28 students and seven faculty members, were interviewed to obtain their perceptions of how students experience the process of spiritual integration within the unique environments found in Bible colleges in the Midwestern and Southeastern United States. The analysis of data collected in the study produced "The Spiritual Integration Model" which shows how students undergo the process of "seeking" God and a spiritual education, "discovering" a college family within an appealing college environment, "developing" relationally and spiritually, "applying" their knowledge and skills through participating in their college and contributing to God and their community, and finally "accepting" their place in the college's spiritual environment. The alignment of students' spirituality with a Bible college's spiritual environment as well as their acceptance, or refusal, of their place in the college was found to influence decisions to persist. [The dissertation citations contained here are published with the permission of ProQuest LLC. Further reproduction is prohibited without permission. Copies of dissertations may be obtained by Telephone (800) 1-800-521-0600. Web page: http://www.proquest.com.bibliotheek.ehb.be/en-US/products/dissertations/individuals.shtml.]
Descriptors: Spiritual Development, Church Related Colleges, Biblical Literature, Religious Education, Undergraduate Students, Role, Academic Persistence, School Holding Power, Student Attitudes, Teacher Attitudes, College Faculty, Social Integration, Religious Factors, Christianity, Student Adjustment
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Publication Type: Dissertations/Theses - Doctoral Dissertations
Education Level: Higher Education
Audience: N/A
Language: English
Sponsor: N/A
Authoring Institution: N/A
Grant or Contract Numbers: N/A
Author Affiliations: N/A